Wanna say "YES" to Jesus ...

She si Linda. One of the most wonderful girls of the English club. She has has been coming since English Club started less then a year ago . Rarely missed one ... payed attention to every word that Astrit and i have been telling to all the girls...

Yesterday after our class we went for a lunch together. It was a blessed time. I got to know more about her, her family and their relationship and her friends but most of all i got to know what is going on in her heart. "I wanna say "YES' to Jesus but still need more time ... I need to talk to my parents and let them know before i decide because i don't wanna feel like i am betraying them" ~ these were her words and she was being so sincere about her feelings.

She comes from a muslim family, from a muslim place in which family ties are very important. Believing in Jesus might not be very pleasant for her parents and her relatives.

So, remember her name and her beautiful face and please join me in prayer as she struggles between God calling her to salvation and the opinion of the others. May she surrender to Jesus and experience forgiveness of her sins. And let Jesus deal with the rest.

A quick update for the last two months.

I will start from Easter!

It was a great class at the English Club. Most of the students came and it was amazing to present them with the whole Gospel. Astrit (the pastor of our church who is planting the church in Babrru, an area outside Tirana) shared with the girls what is the real meaning of the Easter. Some of them gazed at the videos or got lost in Astrit’s words, but I am sure God was working in their hearts. The same day we had some snacks, played some games and in the end gave them some presents! They were so happy to get some new teddy bears for their rooms! They don’t understand yet that there is a greater joy then that, that of receiving salvation and experiencing a relationship with God!!!

We had prepared a 180 event for our youth group. Our church pastor was with us that day and shared with all the people we had invited , of what Christ did on the cross! It was a great time, repeating several times that HE IS RISEN. That is our hope!!!

While, every Saturday at the English Club is more or less like this: We start with the bible study which Astrit (I hope you got familiar with this name since I will be using it a lot J ) is leading it. He is using a study book called “God’s plan of salvation” which is a very good one. After that, I try to help them with their English, teaching them vocabulary, having some fun games that help them with the language but that are also related to the bible. They are memorizing bible verses in English … hopefully that one day God can bring these verses in their minds and change their hearts. Astrit is doing the same study with the boys, but instead of English they play games and every other week they play soccer.

Please pray for wisdom as I start to have one o one time with the girls as it is hard for them to talk freely and be opened in the presence of their friends. I hope God can use this time to soften their hearts and open their eyes.

It’s strange… these girls are so dear to my heart now that I cannot miss one Saturday of being there. I did miss last Saturday as we went with our youth group and a team from America to Durres ( a coastal city not far away from Tirana) , and my mind was there most of the time .

I am also going to help two teenage sisters that are coming to our church to practice their English. This will be during the second service of our church as I will attend the first. Just pray that this will be a time that I share with them what our faith is and which is the only way to God besides helping them with the English!

Furthermore, youth group is going very well but we surely miss Justin and Gretchen and their kids ( our youth pastor and his wife) as they went in America to give birth to their third child, the cute Violet Sue J. God has provided two other godly leaders that are helping with our you. As for the girls, me and my friend Fjori, planned to start a study on Ephesians with one of the girls since she is relatively a young believer and hasn’t read much of the bible. For some reasons, we haven’t started it yet. Hopefully we will be able to stat it next week.

I am sorry it ended up being so long. Promise I will post more often as I get used to blogging and share with you how God is working in Albania.

Here are some pictures :

(Astrit sharing the gospel with the girls)

(watching some sequences from the "Passion of Christ")

(funny pic with the English Club girls)

(English club girls)

(opening the presents)

(ready to have some snacks)

(playing a game)

(Jona and Atala at our youth group. The later got saved during last summer camps)

( Beni and Ina leading us in worship)

(getting ready for the icebreaker)

( a skit some of us had prepared for the youth meeting)